Friday, the Little League Board of Directors unanimously approved a system of pitch counts, based on a player's age, to determine how far into a game a player can pitch and how much rest he'll subsequently need. These limits, which take effect in 2007, apply only for regular-season play. A system for tournament (all-star) competition will be announced this fall:

Little League hopes other youth baseball organizations follow its lead after it adopted the number of pitches to replace innings as a regulator for pitchers.

Little League became the first organization to do so, beginning with the 2007 regular season.

"We call upon all youth baseball organizations, including travel leagues, to implement their own pitch-count programs in the interest of protecting young pitching arms," Little League president and CEO Steve Keener said Friday.

"Our goal continues to be to educate everyone, particularly parents and coaches, on the potential injuries that can occur from throwing too many pitches."

James Andrews, a Birmingham, Ala.-based orthopedist and widely considered the foremost expert on pitching injuries, applauded the move, an attempt to reduce shoulder and elbow injuries among youth pitchers:

"This is one of the most important injury-prevention steps ever initiated in youth baseball by the leader in youth baseball. It is certain to serve as the youth sports injury prevention cornerstone and the inspiration for other youth organizations to take the initiative to get serious about injury prevention in youth sports."

The legislation, enacted by a unanimous vote of Little League's board of directors, takes effect with the 2007 season for 7,000-plus leagues worldwide after a pilot program was used in 2005 and 2006.

While adopting the pitch limits, Little League decreased the rest periods that were used the last two years in its pilot pitch-count program.

"It's progress, but it's not enough progress," said Tom House, an ex-major league pitcher and pitching coach who works with pitchers of all ages. "I think it's great they adopted the pitch count program. But I'm not sure of the logic regarding reducing the rest once kids have reached their limit.

"Maybe they're starting to talk about conditioning and nutrition. Now there's a pipe dream."

Little League spokesman Lance Van Auken said the rest periods were shortened based on feedback from leagues that participated in the pilot program the last two years and that Andrews approved of the move.

Little League plans next month to issue pitching regulations for its All-Star tournament, which would include the World Series.

Van Auken said it's likely a pitch-count program with more liberal rest than just adopted will be used.

"That's when it starts to get a little scary," House said. "That's when kids get abused the most. I'm the kind of guy who wants to err on the conservative side with the pee wees."

Little League started its pilot pitch count program with about 50 leagues in 2005 and expanded it to almost 500 leagues this season.

"Surveys of those leagues showed the overwhelming majority were able to implement a pitch count without any problems," Keener said.

"They also found that they were able to develop other pitchers who might not have otherwise ever taken the mound. And they found that their pitchers were stronger at the end of the season with less arm pain."

The program resulted from consultations Little League had with Andrews' American Sports Medicine Institute. Those consultations showed Little League several studies that volume of pitches was the best indicator of potential arm problems.